Akiko Aspillaga immigrated to the United States from the Philippines at the age of 10 years old. Because of lack of resources and false information from her mother’s employer, she fell out of status. Despite the complexities and challenges she experienced as an undocumented immigrant, she continues to pursue her dreams.
Akiko is the Community Organizer with ASPIRE, the first youth-led undocumented Asian Pacific Islander organization. Akiko reflected on lessons from organizing for pro-immigrant policies and on what it means to trust your struggle.
Akiko delivered this talk at TEDxPeacePlaza on November 9, 2013, in San Francisco’s Japantown. Video by Arthur Prutkov, edited by Glenn Fajardo. Opening montage includes photos by Curtis Fry, Michael Ocampo, Nicholas Shipes, and Jeremy Cusker used under Creative Commons license. TEDxPeacePlaza 2013 is shared with you by the San Francisco Japantown Foundation.
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